Vehicle actuated mechanism for garage doors



Feb. 10, 1959 E. w. voss VEHICLE ACTUATED MECHANISM FOR GARAGE DOORS 4Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 8, 1957 W wzw, N

INVENTOR.

ELMER wvoss ATToENEYs Feb. 10, 1959 E. w. voss VEHICLE ACTUATEDMECHANISM FOR GARAGE DOORS 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 8, 1957INVENTOR.

E LM E R W. \/O a s ATTO F2 NE vs E. W. VOSS Feb. 10, 1959 VEHICLEACTUATED MECHANISM FOR GARAGE DOORS 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March 5, 195788 INVENTOR.

ELMER w. vo 5s ATTORNEYS Feb. 10, 1959 E. w. voss 73,

VEHICLE ACTUATED MECHANISM FOR GARAGE DOORS Filed March 8, 1957 4Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR.

E LME R W \IO 5 A was United States Patent VEHICLE A'CTUATED MECHANISMF0 GARAGE DOORS Elmer W. Voss, Wagoner, Okla.

Application March 8, 1957, Serial No. 644,879 3 Claims. (Cl. 268-37)This invention relates to improved vehicle operated mechanism foroperating garage doors to open and closed positions.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a more reliable andefiicient mechanism of this kind which is simple in construction,composed of a small number of simple and easily assembled parts, andwherein the weight of the garage door is availed of for closing the doorfrom open positions into which it has been operated by vehicle actuationof the mechanism.

Another object of the invention is to provide improved mechanism of thecharacter indicated which includes resilient means for absorbing andcushioning shocks, imposed upon the mechanism incidental to itsactuation and to imperfections in its components due to wear thereon andinaccuracies in the assembly.

A further object of the invention is to provide a vehicle-actuatedgarage door operating mechanism of the character indicated which can bemade in well-finished, rugged, and serviceable forms at relatively lowcost, is easily installed and maintained, and is highly practical andacceptable for the purpose intended.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomeapparent reside in the details of construction and operation as morefully, hereinafter described and' claimed, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals referto like parts throughout the several views, and in which:

Figure 1 is a contracted horizontal section taken through a garage,showing installed therein, in top plan, vehicle-actuated door operatingmechanism of the invention;

Figure 2 is a contracted vertical longitudinal section takensubstantially on the plane of line 2-2 of Figure 1, portions of themechanism being broken away, and showing in phantom lines a vehiclewithin the garage, and operated positions of the mechanism and the door;

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical transverse section takensubstantially on the plane of line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an enlarged and contracted fragmentary vertical transversesection taken substantially on the plane of line 4-4 of Figure 2;

' Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary horizontal section takensubstantially on the plane of line 5-5 of Figure 2;

Figure 6 is a schematic perspective view of the mechanism of theinvention; and I Figure 7 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view ofthe cable assembly, showing the arrangement thereof relative to thepulley of the door-operating lever of the mechanism. t V

Referring to the drawings in detail, indicated generally at 10 is agarage comprising a front wall 12in which is a door opening 14, a floor16, preferably in the formv of a poured concrete slab, which is extendedto provide Figures 1 and 2, is a garage door 20, of any suitable construction which is of the vertically movable overhead type, and can bedisplaced rearwardly and upwardly to the generally horizontal overheadopen position shown in phantom lines in Figure 2.

The garage 10 further comprises side walls 22 and 24 on Whose innersides are secured posts 26 and 28, respectively, which have extendinglaterally inwardly therefrom at their upper ends, axially aligned bolts30 and 32, respectively, which have journalled thereon the rear ends oflever arms 34 and 36, on whose forward ends are laterally inwardlyextending brackets 42 and 44 which are fixed to the rear side of thegarage door 20, as indicated at 46, at points substantially midwaybetween the upper and lower edges of the door 20.

For counterbalancing the weight of the door 20, a contractile spring 52is stretched between the lever arm 34 and an eye 50 secured in a block48 secured to the garage side wall 22 at a point spaced above andrearwardly from the post 26.

The illustrated vehicle-actuated mechanism of the invention comprisesfront and rear treadle assemblies 56 and 58, a door operating leverassembly 60, and a latch assembly, indicated generally at 62.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the lever assembly 69 and the latchassembly 62 are located along the garage side wall 24, out of way of avehicle V entering and leaving the garage 19, the front treadle assembly56 is spaced forwardly from the front wall 12 of the garage, and therear treadle assembly 58 is located rearwardly of the latch assembly 62and at the same side of the garage.

The front treadle assembly 56 comprises a transversely elongated ramp 64rising from the driveway l8 and having therein a transversely elongatedtrench 66, see Figure 2. Secured in and rising from the ramp 64 atopposite ends of the trench 66 are hollow standards 68 and 70, thestandard 70 being substantially taller than the standard 68. As clearlyseen in Figure 4, the standards 68 and 70 have in facing portions oftheir sidewalls, vertically elongated slots 72 and 74, respectively,communicating withthe trench 66 of the ramp 64. Extending along thetrench 66 and normally positioned above the upper surface of the ramp64, and depressible into the trench 66, is an elongated treadle bar 76having secured on the underside thereof longitudinal arms 78 and 80,which extend beyond related ends of the treadle bar 76 and extend intothe standards 68 and 70 through the slots 72 and 74, as seen in Figure4. The arm 78 has a depending lug 82 which has circumposed thereon theupper end of a coil spring 84, whose lever end is seated in a recess 86in the ramp 64.

The standard 70 is open at its lever end, as seen in Figure 4, andcommunicates with an elongated passage 88 formed in the driveway 18 andin the floor 16 of the garage 10, and extending rearwardly beneath thelever assembly and the latch assembly 62, see Figure 2.

The rear treadle assembly 58 comprises. a ramp 92 rising from the garagefloor 16 rearwardly of the latch assembly 62, and having therein atransversely elongated trench 94. Set into the end of the ramp 92 nearthe garage side Wall 24 is the lower end of a hollow standard 96,similar to the standard and in longitudinal alignment with the standard70. The lever end of the standard 96 communicates with the trench 88, asseen in Figure 2. Extending along the trench 94 is an elongated adriveway 18 leading to the door opening 14. Nor

mally closing the opening 14,-as shown in full lines in treadle bar 98,which is normally positioned above the ramp 92 and is depressible intothe trench 94 by the front wheels F of a vehicle V entering and leavingthe garage 10, as seen in phantom lines in Figure 2. When the vehicle Vis parked in the garage, its front wheels-F 3 are located rearwardlybeyond the rear treadle assembly 58.

The treadle bar 98 has suitably secured on its underside at the endthereof remote from the standard 96, suitable hinge means 102 secured tothe floor 16, and the treadle bar 98 is normally yieldably maintained inits elevated position by a compression spring 103 interposed between thebottom of the trench 94 and the underside of the treadle bar 98.Extending longitudinally beyond the end remote from the hinge means 102is an arm 104 which extends through a vertical slot 196, see Figure 2,in the lower end of the standard 96.

The door operating lever assembly 68 comprises a lever 108 which extendsin a forwardly inclined position, as shown in full lines in Figure 2,and has transversely pivoted in its upper end, as indicated at 116, theupper rear end of a link 112, whose forward lever end is pivotallyconnected at 114 to the upper edge of the door bracket 44.

The lever 108 includes a yoke 116 having spaced parallel legs 118 and120 secured to the ends of a transverse shaft 122 at the lower end ofthe lever 108. The shaft 122 'is journalled in bearings 123 seated inthe garage floor 16, the shaft 122 being located in an opening 90 in thegarage floor 16 which communicates with the passage 88. Fixed on theshaft 122 between the bearings 123 is a pulley 124 which is located inthe opening 90, as seen in Figure 2.

As indicated in Figure 2, counterclockwise rotation of the pulley 124through approximately ninety degrees results in operation of the door 20from the solid line closed position to the open overhead position shownin phantom lines in Figure 2. Looped around the shaft 122 is anintermediate portion 125 of a flexible cable 126, with the portion 125of the cable extending crosswise of the pulley 124 through a notch 128in the periphery of the pulley 124. The cable 126 is wound several timesaround the pulley 124 in the groove 127 thereof, as indicated at 130 inFigure 7, and has flights 132 and 134 extending downwardly from the rearside of the pulley, as seen in Figures 2 and 6. The cable flight 132extends under an upstanding guide pulley 136 on a bracket 138 secured onthe floor of the passage 88. Another such pulley 142 on a bracket 140 issecured on the floor of the passage 88, as shown in Figures 2 and 4, islocated beneath the lower end of the standard 70 of the front treadleassembly 56 and has the cable flight 132 trained thereunder. Mountedwithin the upper part of the standard 70 is an upper shaft 144 having apulley 146 thereon over which an intermediate part of the cable flight132 is trained, with the terminal end 148 thereof secured in an opening150 in the arm 80 of the front treadle assembly 76, see Figure 4.

The cable flight 134 is trained rearwardly under a pulley 152 mounted ona bracket 154 behind the pulley 124 and depending from the top wall ofthe passage 88, and rearwardly under a pulley 156 on a bracket 158mounted on the bottom of the passage 88 beneath the standard 96 of therear treadle assembly 58. The standard 96 has in its upper end a shaft160 having thereon a pulley 162 over which the cable flight 134 istrained, the terminal end of the cable flight 134 being secured to thearm 104 of the treadle bar 98, as indicated at 164, see Figure 6.

The latch assembly 62 comprises a vertical, inverted U-shaped housing166 comprising a top plate 172 and depending parallel side plates 168and 170 disposed at opposite sides of the garage floor opening 90, whichcommunicates with the passage 88, the lower ends of the side plates 168and 170 being secured to a block 171 secured to the garage floor 16. Theside plates 168 and 170 have extending between the upper portionsthereof a shaft 174 which has journalled thereon intermediate portionsof latch levers 176 and 178, the latch lever 176 being operativelyconnected to the front treadle assembly 56 and the latch lever 178 beingoperatively connected to the rear treadle assembly 58, as hereinafterdescribed. Stretched between the housing top plate 172 and the rear endsof the latch levers 176 and 178 are contractile springs 180 and 182,respectively. The springs 180 and 182 bias the forward ends of the latchlevers 176 and 178 downwardly in clockwise directions, as viewed inFigures 2 and 6. The latch levers 176 and 178 have depending hooks 184and 186, respectively, on their forward ends, which have on theirforward ends cam surfaces and 190, respectively.

The yoke 116 of the door operating lever 108 has extending transverselybetween intermediate portions of its legs 118 and 120 spaced upper andlower plates 192 and 194, the lower plate 194 being a latch plate. Theupper edge 196 of the latch plate 194 is arranged to be engaged by thehooks 184 and 186 of the latch levers 176 and 178 so as to retain thelever 108 in the operated phantom line position shown in Figure 2. Thecam surfaces 188 and 190 of the latch levers are arranged to beoperatively engaged by the upper latch plate 194 as the lever 108 movesrearwardly and upwardly, so as to engage the books over the upper edge196 of the latch plate 194. The upper yoke plate 192 is arranged toengage the cam surfaces of the latch levers and retain the same inelevated positions, against the resistance of the springs and 182, ashereinafter described.

The latch levers 176 and 178 have depending from their rear endscontractile, shock-absorbing coil springs 198 and 200, respectively,whose lower ends are secured to terminal ends of secondary cables 202and 204, respectively. The cable 204 is trained under the pulley 136 andextends forwardly under the pulley 142 and upwardly over a pulley 206mounted on a transverse shaft 208 in the standard 70 of the fronttreadle assembly 56. The terminal end of the cable 204 is secured to thearm 80 of the treadle bar 76, see Figure 6. The cable 202 is trainedunder the pulley 152 and extends rearwardly under the pulley 156 andupwardly and over a pulley 210 on a shaft 212 extending transversely inthe standard 96 of the rear treadle assembly 58. The terminal end of thecable 202 is secured to the arm 104 on the treadle bar 98.

If desired, the cable flights 132 and 134 may incorporate inintermediate portions thereof suitable shock absorbing springs 214, seeFigure 6.

The garage door operating mechanism functions in the following manner:

With the door 20 in the closed solid line position shown in Figure 2,and a vehicle approaching to enter the garge 10, the front wheels of thevehicle roll over and depress the front treadle bar 76. This pulls thecable flight 132 forwardly so as to rotate the pulley 124 and the dooroperating lever 108 in a counter-clockwise direction, so as to elevatethe door 20 from the solid line position shown in Figure 2, to therearward overhead position shown therein in phantom lines. At the sametime, the secondary cable 204 is pulled forwardly so that the latchlever 178 is tilted rearwardly. Continued upward movement of the lever108 results in engagement of the latch plate 194 with the cam surface188 of the latch lever 178, so as to engage the hook 184 of the latchlever 176 over the upper edge 196 of the latch plate 194. At the sametime, the upper yoke plate 192 engages the cam surface of the latchlever 178 and thereby maintains the latch lever 178 in the rearwardlytilted position mentioned, so that as the front wheels of the vehiclepass the front treadle assembly 56 and enter the garage, the door 20 isretained in the overhead phantom line position of Figure 2, by theengagement of thet hook 184 of the latch lever 176 over the upper edge194 of the latch plate 194. When the vehicle is in the garage and itsfront wheels engage and depress the treadle bar 98 of the rear treadleassembly 58, the cable flight 134, which is operatively connected to thelatch lever 176, is pulled rearwardly so as to tilt the latch lever 176in a rearward, counterclockwise direction, so as to elevate the forwardend thereof and disengage the hook 184 from the upper edge 196 of thelatch plate 194 and enable the door 20 to descend gravitationally toitsclosed position 'behindthe vehicle.

This releases the latch lever 178 from the yoke plate 192 to be swungdown to its normal horizontal position by the spring 182.

In order to elevate the door 20 from its closed position to enablebacking the vehicle from the garage, the vehicle is backed up so thatits front wheels engage and depress the treadle bar 98 and thereby pullthe cable flight 134 rearwardly, so that the door 20 is elevated to theoverhead phantom line position shown in Figure 2. Asthis occurs thesecondary cable 202 is pulled rearwardly so that the latch lever 176 istilted rearwardly in a counter-clockwise direction, as viewed in Figure6, so that its cam surface 188 is engaged by the yoke plate 192 and isheld out of action while the garage door 20is open. At the same time,the latch plate 194 engaged the cam surface 190 of the latch lever 178and causes the hook 186 thereof to engage over the upper edge 196 of thelatch plate 194, so that the door 20 isheld in its open overheadposition. As the vehicle moves out of the garage its front wheels engageand depress the treadle bar 76 so that the secondary cable 204 is pulledrearwardly so as to tilt the latch lever 178 rearwardly in acounterclockwise direction, against the resistance of the spring 182, soas to disengage the hook 186 from the upper edge of the latch plate 194,so as to permit the door 20 to descend to its solid line closed positionof Figure 2. The passage of the rear wheels of the vehicle, on enteringthe garage, overthe front treadle bar 76 has no effect upon themechanism.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles ofthe invention. Since numerous modifications and changes will readilyoccur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit theinvention to the exact construction and operation shown and described,and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may beresorted to, as fall within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. 'In combination, a garage comprising sidewalls, a floor, a front wallhaving a door opening therein, a

driveway in front of said front wall, a door mounted to swing from aclosed vertical position in the door opening to a rearward overhead openposition, a door-operating lever assembly comprising a transverse shaftjournalled on said floor behind the door, a pulley fixed on said shaft,a normally forwardly inclined lever having a lower end fixed on saidshaft and an upper end operatively connected to the door, said leverhaving thereon a transverse latch plate and a yoke plate spacedthereabove, a latch assembly mounted on said floor behind said lever,said latch assembly comprising an upstanding housing, laterally spacedfirst and second latch levers pivoted on said housing, spring meansnormally depressing said latch levers, said latch levers having rear andforward ends, depending hooks on the forward ends of the latch levershaving forwardly facing cam surfaces thereon, said latch plate having anupper edge, said lever being arranged to be swung rearwardly from itsnormally forwardly inclined position wherein said door is in its closedposition toward a vertical position wherein said door is in a rearwardoverhead open position, a front treadle assembly on said driveway andspaced forwardly from the front wall of the garage, a rear treadleassembly in the garage and spaced rearwardly from said latch assembly,first operating connection means connected between said front treadleassembly and said pulley and said first and second latch levers forelevating said first latch lever and swinging the door operating leverrearwardly as the front treadle assembly is depressed by wheels of avehicle, rearward-movement of the door operating lever producingengagement of the latch plate with the *cam surface of the second latchlever and engagement of its hook over the upper edge of the latch plateand retaining engagement of the yoke plate with the cam surface of thefirst latch lever in the elevated position thereof, whereby the dooroperating lever is retained'in its rearward vertical position, secondoperating connection' means connected between said rear treadleassembly, the pulley of the door operating assembly and said first andsecond latch levers for elevating said second latch lever so as todisengage its book from the upper edge of the latch plate as the reartreadle assembly is depressed by Wheels of a vehicle in the garage asthe vehicle is backed outof the garage and thereby free the dooroperating lever to be swung downwardly toward its normal position by theweight of the door moving toward the closed position.

2. In combination, a garage comprising sidewalls, a floor, a front wallhaving a door opening therein, a driveway in front of said front wall, adoor mounted to swing from a closed vertical position in the dooropening to a rearward overhead open position, a door-operating leverassembly comprising a tranverse shaft journalled on said floor behindthe door, a pulley fixed on said shaft, a normally forwardly inclinedlever having a lower end fixed on said shaft and an upper endoperatively connected to the door, said lever having thereon atransverse latch. plate and a yoke plate spaced thereabove, a latchassembly mounted on said floor behind said lever, said latch assemblycomprising an upstanding housing, laterally spaced first and secondlatch levers pivoted on said hous ing, spring means normally depressingsaid latch levers, said latchlevers having rear and forward ends,depending hooks on the forward ends of the latch levers having forwardlyfacing cam surfaces thereon, said latch plate having an upper edge, saidlever being arranged to be swung rearwardly from its normally forwardlyinclined position wherein said door is in its closed position toward avertical position wherein said door is in a rearward overhead openposition, a front treadle assembly on said driveway and spaced forwardlyfrom the front wall of the garage, a rear treadle assembly in the garageand spaced rearwardly from said latch assembly, first operatingconnection means connected between said front treadle assembly and saidpulley and said first and second latch levers for elevating said firstlatch lever and swinging the door operating lever rearwardly as thefront treadle assembly is depressed by wheels of a vehicle, rearwardmovement of the door operating lever producing engagement of the latchplate with the cam surface of the second latch lever and engagement ofits hook over the upper edge of the latch plate and retaining engagementof the yoke plate with the cam surface of the first latch lever in theelevated position thereof, whereby the door operating lever is retainedin its rearward vertical position, second operating connection meansconnected between said rear treadle assembly, the pulley of the dooroperating assembly and said first and second latch levers for elevatingsaid second latch lever so as to disengage its hook from the upper edgeof the latch plate as the rear treadle assembly is depressed by wheelsof a vehicle in the garage as the vehicle is backed out of the garageand thereby free the door operating lever to be swung downwardly towardits normal position by the weight of the door moving toward the closedposition, said front and rear treadle assemblies comprising transversetreadle bars, spring means yieldably holding said treadle bars inelevated positions above the driveway and the garage floor, saidoperating connection means comprising cables having flights connected toone end of the treadle bars and engaged around the pulley, some of thecable flights having terminal ends severally connected to the rear endsof the first and second latch levers.

3. In combination, a garage comprising sidewalls, a. floor, a front wallhaving a door opening therein, a driveway in front of said front wall, adoor mounted to 7 swing from a closed vertical position in the dooropening to a rearward overhead open position, a door-operating leverassembly comprising a transverse shaft journalled on said floor behindthe door, a pulleyfixed on said shaft, a normally forwardly inclinedlever having a lower end fixed on said shaft and an upper endoperatively connected to the door, said lever having thereon atransverse latch plate and a yoke plate spaced thereabove, a latchassembly mounted on said floor behind said lever, said latch assemblycomprising an upstanding housing, laterally spaced first and secondlatch levers pivoted on said housing, spring means normally depressingsaid latch levers, said latch levers having rear and forward ends,depending hooks on the forward ends of the latch levers having forwardlyfacing cam surfaces thereon, said latch plate having an upper edge, saidlever being arranged to be swung rearwardly from its normally forwardlyinclined position wherein said door is in its closed position toward avertical positon wherein said door is in a rearward overhead open positin, a front treadle assembly on said driveway and spaced forwardly fromthe front wall of the garage, a rear treadle assembly in the garage andspaced rearwardly from said latch assembly, first operating connectionmeans connected between said front treadle assembly and said pulley andsaid first and second latch levers for elevating said first latch leverand swinging the door operating lever rearwardly as the front treadleassembly is depressed by wheels of a vehicle, rearward movement of thedoor operating lever producing engagement of the latch plate with thecam surface of the second latch lever and engagement of its hook overthe upper edge of the latch plate and retaining engagement of the yokeplate with the cam surface of the first latch lever in the elevatedposition thereof, whereby the door operating lever is retained in itsrearward vertical position, second operating connection means connectedbetween said rear treadle assembly, the pulley of the door operatingassembly and said first and second latch levers for elevating saidsecond latch lever so as to disengage its hook from the upper edge ofthe latch plate as the rear treadle assembly is depressed by wheels of avehicle in the garage as the vehicle is backed out of the garage andthereby free the door operating lever to be swung downwardly toward itsnormal position by the weight of the door moving toward the closedposition, said front and rear treadle assemblies comprising transversetreadle bars, spring means yieldably holding said treadle bars inelevated positions above the driveway and the garage floor, saidoperating connection means comprising cables having flights connected toone end of the treadle bars and engaged around the pulley, some of thecable flights having terminal ends severally connected to the rear endsof the first and second latch levers, shock abs rbing contractilesprings connecting said terminal ends to the rear ends of the latchbars, and other contractile springs connected in intermediate portionsof the cable flights.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,234,341 Johnson July 24, 1917 2,543,506 Peters Feb. 27, 1951 2,554,729Bass May 29, 1951

